


Encore

by Billywick



Category: Young Avengers
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-29
Updated: 2013-05-29
Packaged: 2017-12-13 08:34:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/822238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Billywick/pseuds/Billywick
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This belongs to Desecrate through Reverence, but never had any room in the actual fic. Consider it thus as exactly what the title implies. An encore. To tie up some loose ends from DtR. Pretty damn fluffy, might give you diabetes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Encore

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Desecrate through Reverence](https://archiveofourown.org/works/573254) by [Billywick](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Billywick/pseuds/Billywick). 



There's nothing quite like waking up to the smell of eggs and bacon on a weekend morning, with the sunbeams caressing the skin of one's face and the fresh, crisp air of a new day coercing big, deep breaths.

Really, nothing better. Ask anyone if you don't believe it so. For him, this was the best life could offer him. His name is Teddy Altman and for once, he was utterly happy and content with himself, his life and the world.

Mostly because the world and especially his life orbited this amazing being that called itself Billy Kaplan and wore the veil of perfection wrapped thickly around him. Of course, if you asked Billy himself, he would withdraw himself from such high assessment. Billy might even describe himself as this average, kind of lucky kid who was pushing himself through college in a class he didn't know he liked.

Actually, taking psychology hadn't even been his own idea. Billy's parents certainly held all the cards in that aspect. Okay, his dad, a radiologist, didn't really care what Billy chose as long as he put himself through school somehow. But his mom had been absolutely imperative in his choice.

Billy didn't mind. His mind had been so very far from school at the time of choosing his courses, it was a little bit ridiculous.

And now, we come full circle and return to Teddy Altman, the reason Billy never did have much of a mind to look closely at his life choices.

Teddy gave a little hum, the lovechild of a pleased groan and a whining moan as he felt the other side of the bed. Still warm. Billy couldn't have gotten up more than ten minutes ago. 

The entire apartment was filled with the wafting aroma of breakfast and the fresh bite of morning air. Billy never did fail to open every door and window to get the lingering warmth of 'bad air' as he called it out. Must have been something he adopted from his mother, because the two times Teddy had spent the night with Billy at the Kaplans, he observed a similar morning ritual in the stout psychologist. Billy took after his mom a fair bit, not that he needed to hear that.

No, back to breakfast and his most likely sparsely dressed boyfriend preparing it. Teddy gave one last blissful sigh at the lingering warmth of their little nest before rolling himself over the side of the bed and onto his feet. His clothes from the previous night were strewn across the floor in a distinctly teenage mess-sort of way. 

Deeming his briefs clean enough (really, they hadn't stayed on long after his shower last night and Billy's eager paws), Teddy donned the thin garment and prowled through the small flat, following the scent of breakfast. It better not have been coming from next door, or else Teddy might actually break down and cry.

But lady luck was with him today. Billy was not sitting at their rickety table (supported by haphazardous stacks of cardboard and phone books) with a bowl of cereal; no, he was standing in front of the stove, long and lean and wonderfully underdressed. Teddy could, all of a sudden, forsake the thought of breakfast as his eyes traced and mapped out every part of Billy's bare legs. Only a pair of briefs and a long t-shirt obscured the rest of the view. 

"It walks."

Teddy's lip curled into a smile as he crossed the threshold of the kitchen/living room and his arms found a wonderful rest around Billy's waist. He was even wearing an apron. Could his boyfriend possibly try any harder to be adorable? Probably not.

"It hungers."

"It will be fed soon enough."

"Will it also be kissed?"

Teddy could feel the chuckle run over Billy's shoulders and down his spine. He loved the feeling, sight and sound of Billy laughing. It was better than any record-breaking single or some ancient, musical marvel. Billy Kaplan chuckling, complete with his eyes crinkling at the corners, with the slight wrinkle on his nose and the way he curled his lips as if he couldn't help but smile...

Alright, yes, Teddy Altman is also a love-struck fool, thank you.

"Only if it brushes its teeth. Teddy, I love you, but morning breath is above and beyond that."

"And here I thought you worshipped the ground I walked over."

"I do. But not your morning breath."

A quick, light peck to his cheek assuaged Teddy's non-existent rage and he even accepted the light pat that spun him from clinging to Billy's back. 

The smack to his ass had him jump though. Billy was certainly in a capricious mood this morning. This bode very well indeed.

"Breakfast is almost done anyway. Try putting on a shirt, unless you want me to eat off of you. And then have you for dessert."

"How do you know that isn't exactly what I intended?"

"Nympho. Go, come back human."

 

Teddy more or less obeyed that command, even if he was grumbling all the way to the bathroom.

It wasn't much later that they were seated at aforementioned rickety table, amiable silence between them as forkfuls of scrambled eggs and bacon disappeared into their mouths.

"So, what is it?"

"Hm?" Billy looked up from the comic book (they always had a handy stack all over the flat) and regarded him with a warm look as he sipped at his coffee. Trying to part a Kaplan from his coffee was an impossible endeavour, almost as dangerous as speaking to one in the morning, before said glorious liquid had been ingested.

"Come on. Weekend breakfast? I smell ulterior motive all over this," he gave the eggs a sniff, no malice in his voice, "and I also smell nutmeg. Which is terrific, by the way."

"I'm glad my evil ulterior motive eggs are to your liking," evidently, it wasn't too early for Billy to give him lip, but that's pretty much how they functioned. It was sickening, really.

"You know how we decided to keep living here in this very small apartment even though you have a perfectly usable house filled with Tommy, Tommy's man-friend and guitars?"

"Hey, you were all for staying here. You know, because of the commute to work," Teddy pointed to the floor, though neither needed to be reminded of the astounding fact they lived above the comic book store.

"I know, and I haven't changed my mind. But it is getting a bit...crowded. I was wondering if, since you know, you're such an amazing boyfriend and I did cook you breakfast, you could take a bunch of boxes with you to practice today. You can leave 'em in your attic or anywhere really."

Teddy shrugged his agreement, grin broad on his face. That was a lot of effort for such a small favour. He kind of wanted to see what Billy thought he should do for something really difficult. 

"Sure. Just dump 'em in the hallway downstairs. Eli's picking me up today. You sure you don't wanna come?"

Billy made a face at him.

"Of course I wanna. But I do have schoolwork to do. Papers don't write themselves. I'll be over as soon as possible, I promise. Besides, you really think I have anything better to do than hang out with the Young Avengers?"

"I don't know, man, they're pretty underground right now," Teddy's hipster impression left much to be desired, but achieved his goal of getting another laugh out of Billy.

"Eat your eggs hipster Altman."

"You've probably never heard of eggs with nutmeg. I wouldn't expect you to, being mainstream and all."

At this point, Billy began snorting coffee from his nose.

*

Darkness hugged the Altman house by the time Billy slipped into the small oasis of light. Judging by the crowded driveway, everyone had beaten him here, including Kate, who worked full time for her mother's charity foundation nowadays. 

Damn it. He just hoped he hadn't missed the food. Teddy might save him a slice of pizza if they ordered it, but if the meal consisted of Noh-Varr's cooking (it was unbelievable that the man was an undiscovered diamond chef!) then there wouldn't be a lick of it left for him. Tommy would make sure of that.

Sometimes, he wondered when he'd gotten to be in such a...brotherly rivalry with Tommy. He figured it had something to do with the way they looked, like identical twins. Actually, Billy kind of wanted to talk to him about that, but Teddy had advised him to take it easy on Tommy. The singer didn't open up easily and though he seemed back to his old self, the group still tread on eggshell topics around him. 

Much to Tommy's chagrin.

"Look who finally made it! Hey Billy!" Eli was first to greet him with a fistbump and a hug awkward enough to let Billy know the meal was long done and the beer supply had been tapped. 

"Eli, hey. How's your grandpa?"

The drummer smiled warmly, happy to know his friends shared concern over his family. It was insane to think of how messed up everything between them all were not so long ago. With Tommy a junkie, Teddy heartbroken, Eli gone with all their money (on account of an absolute family emergency) and the weight of losing Nate...

But those were...dark days. And they were behind them now. Not that anyone forgot about Nate Richards, but his death no longer held them all in a terrifying mantle of inconsolable grief.

"He's good, man. How's school?"

"Sucks. I spent all day on a paper and it still sucks ass. Did you guys leave me any food?" Billy pulled off his jacket and shoes.

"None at all." Eli grinned broadly.

"Jerks."

"You can feed on my love instead." Teddy interrupted the brief conversation by wrapping Billy into his arms and pressing a sloppy kiss to his temple, nose and chin.

"You're drunk."

"Undoubtedly."

"And you really didn't save me any food?"

"Not a scrap."

Just as Billy was considering revoking Teddy's permit to title himself best boyfriend ever, Noh-Varr peaked up from his perch on the sofa. He couldn't possibly get up, not with the manner in which Tommy was draped over him, ardently and enthusiastically arguing with Kate.

"Actually, I saved you a plate. It's in the oven. I nearly had to put a padlock on it. These guys are animals."

"It's your fault, don't cook something so delicious and we won't maul you for it."

Eli and Teddy felt entirely justified to give each other a brofist over the synchronized retort as Billy peeled away from his overly affectionate and slightly buzzed guitarist to get food. It looked pretty damn amazing. Some kind of roast? There was meat with meat and potatoes and gravy and even vegetables too. Noh probably had to wrestle this plate away from the clamouring beasts. He made a mental note to buy the man chocolates some time.

As he perched himself on a stool to wait vigilantly by the microwave, Billy tuned into the conversations around him.

Most notably, the one Tommy was trying to have with Kate, Jonas and Noh-Varr, though the latter certainly only served some sort of back-up function. Billy only caught the tail-end, the closing statement so to say.

"All I'm saying is that this guy right here, he can get the same kind of enjoyment out of reading sheet music than a gig. Seriously. Sheet music! In a silent room!"

"That's not precisely true, Tommy," Noh-Varr's hand was massaging over Tommy's shoulder, either in punishment or absent-minded appreciation. The two of them were still a little more reserved about public displays of affection, but small touches like this put them at ease.

"I never said I prefer it to watching an artist perform. I just said I also appreciate music in its purest form. It's an entirely different ballpark though, live and sheet music."

"You can't account for the sublime qualities of my voice if all you read is what Teddy or Eli or Jonas play! I mean what about the tonality, the rhythm? All of that isn't written down, you can't just imagine it."

Tommy's eyes shone as he carried on, now turned in Noh's lap to stare up at him, demanding a defeat or at least a surrender. He was quite obviously right here.

Kate gave a chuckle, sipping at her beer once more. Watching Tommy and Noh-Varr argue was almost as good as a TV soap. Well, depending on your taste of course.

"You both realize you're not actually making any points, right? You're just disagreeing about Tommy's ego."

"My ego is the core substance of this band!" Tommy sniped, fingers curling at Noh's hip. Not a sign of insecurity, but enough of a warning for Noh to realize Tommy's bravado was beginning to breach his realm of comfort. Time to utilize his inherent Shepherd-shepherding skill.

"No one questioned your ego, Tommy. We know it is a fragile flower."

"Ass. I'm not sleeping with you tonight."

"Liar."

"Fuck you."

Noh-Varr chuckled as Tommy leaned up to press an aggressive little nip to his cheek, followed by a swift, apologetic kiss to his lips.

"Maybe if you're lucky."

Jonas, the poor thing, choked on his beer at Noh's last retort, but Kate handled it with the smooth ease only she could exude. 

"Okay guys, either give us a show or keep it in the bedroom. But no teasing."

Billy found himself giggling. Yes, legitimately giving a giggling noise. He couldn't help it. His friends were...hilarious, amazing, the best people in the world. Especially when they argued with each other, discussed their sex lives and music and somehow wrangled it all into this warm atmosphere of 'home'. This was his chosen family and he'd never-

"You've got that cheesy look on your face that sounds like a feel-good epilogue."

Teddy was leaning over his shoulder, picking at the remainder of his not-quite-finished meal.

"I was just about to wrap up a nice internal monologue, thank you very much."

"You know I prefer you share those with me. You have a way with words I can never get enough of."

"Hopeless flatterer. What makes you say that?" Billy nibbled at the last potato he'd speared from his plate and kept a suspicious eye on Teddy. Something told him his boyfriend was up to no good. Not with that little devious sparkle in his ocean-blue eyes. Not that Teddy was capable of real malice, but he could be a little mischievous when the mood struck him.

And right now, he was grinning that way that suggested he wanted to rub his hands in glee. 

"Out with it, Altman."

"Oh, nothing. Except...well, I couldn't help thinking about something today. You see, when I was a young lad, in a successful rock band..."

Billy rolled his eyes. This was usually how Teddy's many humorous anecdotes from the band's 'glory days' began. Stories he loved dearly, but heard at least twice a week.

"...and he told me all sorts of things, really inspirational stuff, sometimes it sounded like a crush, sometimes like real love confessions, just real deep-"

"Wait, what?"

Teddy blinked, then clasped Billy's arm, though his fingers didn't remain still, instead stroking up and down in a soothing rhythm.

"It was you, I realized. But I never really got around to thanking you."

"For what?" Billy bleated. He was pretty sure he knew what Teddy was talking about, but that didn't mean he wanted to face the embarrassing confrontation with the truth right here and now.

"Your letters. They used to be the highlight of my day. When I saw those brown envelopes I-"

"How did you know? And why right now?" Billy had turned a brilliant shade of pink, something Teddy found adorable. If Billy wouldn't lunge at him, he would have taken at least a dozen pictures of him right now.

"In one of your boxes...I found some envelopes. And the writing...I'm really an idiot, I mean, you didn't write to me after...the article, and never since. I should have known it was you."

"I'm glad you didn't."

Teddy looked at him, baffled for a minute. Was this not a happy memory for his boyfriend? 

"Why?"

"...because if you would have told me that before we were a firmly established couple, I would have exploded. Spontaneously combusted. Instant death."

The blond gave a disbelieving chuckle and wrapped his perfect boyfriend in his arms once more, swaying him until the pink retreated back down his neck.

"You're a dork, Billy. I loved your letters. I always wanted to reply to them, they really moved me."

"Again, you would have killed me. Premature ending at the first line."

"You're really dramatic, did I ever tell you that?"

"Put it in a letter, Altman."


End file.
